Jan 7, 2023; Paradise, Nevada, USA; Las Vegas Raiders tight end Jesper Horsted (80) and defensive end Malcolm Koonce (51) enter the field before the game against the Kansas City Chiefs at Allegiant Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports
Las Vegas Raiders owner Mark Davis has revealed his reasons for firing head coach Josh McDaniels this week, insisting the team were ‘going in the wrong direction.’
The Raiders are 3-5 for the season, and billionaire Davis admits he had created a self-imposed personal deadline of October 31 to decide whether to let some of his key personnel go.
Now, former head coach McDaniels and general manager Dave Ziegler are looking for employment outside of the Raiders organization, after Davis pulled the trigger on Tuesday.
Unfortunately, I had great hopes for Josh and Dave,’ Davis told ESPN this week. ‘It just seemed we were going in the wrong direction.’
‘So, with the trade deadline, I just felt it was time to make a change, time to make a move,’ Davis added.
Ziegler and McDaniels were given pink slips less than two years after Davis hired them away from the New England Patriots.
Davis now turns to Antonio Pierce and Champ Kelly as the interim head coach and general manager respectively.
Davis told ESPN he wants Pierce to ‘lead, not necessarily coach. To delegate to the coordinators and other position coaches. Be somebody they could follow. I felt good about it. I felt good about him.’
‘That’s not to say I don’t want him to coach now, but he understands the culture of the Raiders, and that’s important to me,’ Davis added of Pierce. ‘I felt very good about it.’:
The Raiders are coming off a pair of embarrassing losses, a trend that routinely came up during McDaniels’ two years coaching the team.
On Monday, Las Vegas lost 26-14 to the Detroit Lions with a dysfunctional offense despite talent such as Davante Adams and Josh Jacobs.
Two weeks ago, the Raiders lost 30-12 to the Chicago Bears, who were starting undrafted former Division II quarterback Tyson Bagent in his NFL debut.
A decision on a full-time head coach and general manager likely won’t be made until after the season ends.
Now, expectations still aren’t high for the Raiders.
‘I have no idea,’ Davis said of his expectations. ‘That’s why they play the games. My job, my role is to give them all the tools possible for them to succeed.’
‘Once they’re the head coach and general manager, they’re the ones making the decisions,’ Davis added.
